by Günther Rüdiger and Rainer Hollerbach
Magnetism is one of the most
pervasive features of the Universe, with planets, stars and entire galaxies all having associated magnetic fields. All
of these fields are generated by the motion of electrically conducting fluids, the so-called dynamo effect. The
precise details of what drives the motion, and indeed what the fluid consists of, differ
widely though.
In this work the authors draw upon their expertise in geophysical and astrophysical MHD to
explore some of these phenomena, and describe the similarities and differences between different
magnetized objects. They also explain why magnetic fields are crucial in the formation of the stars, and discuss
promising experiments currently being designed to study some of the relevant physics in the laboratory. This
interdisciplinary approach makes the book appealing to a wide audience in physics, astrophysics and geophysics.
Günther Rüdiger received his PhD
from the University of Jena, Germany. He works with his group at the Astrophysical
Institute Potsdam which is closely related to the University of Potsdam. He worked at the University of Goettingen, and the
High Altitude Observatory in Boulder, Colorado. He is also a former visiting professor at the University of
Newcastle upon Tyne, England.
Rainer Hollerbach is Reader in Applied Mathematics at the University
of Glasgow, Scotland. He has a PhD in Geophysics from the University of California, San Diego. He recently
spent a year in Germany as a Research Fellow of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.
Contents
Introduction
Earth and Planets
Differential Rotation Theory
The Stellar Dynamo
The Magnetorotational Instability
The Galactic Dynamo
Neutron Star Magnetism
The Magnetic Taylor-Couette Flow
ISBN 3-527-40409-0 - Wiley-VCH, Berlin
| |
| Cover picture: Total radio emission and magnetic field vectors of M51, obtained with the Very Large Array and the Effelsberg 100-m telescope, lambda = 6.2cm. With kind permission of Rainer Beck, Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, Bonn. |
|